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Relatives fear for safety of Canadian detained in Turkey in wake of failed coup

Friends and family say they’re worried about the fate of a Calgary man who was detained in Turkey after being accused of being a key plotter of the failed coup.

Davud Hanci, who lives in Calgary and works as an imam for Correctional Service Canada, has been detained in Turkey after being accused of being involved in the failed coup, his familiy says. (Facebook)

By Jasmine KabatayStaff Reporter

Sun., July 24, 2016

Friends and family say they fear for the safety of a Calgary man who was detained in Turkey after being accused of being a key plotter of the failed coup on July 15.

Davud Hanci went to Turkey on July 7 to visit his ailing father, but this weekend his name appeared in Turkish news reports connecting him with the coup, relatives say.

“It’s unbelievable, and I’m afraid for him as well,” said Malick Muradov, executive director of the Intercultural Dialogue Institute in Calgary, and one of Hanci’s friends.

According to Muradov, Turkish media is reporting Hanci is from Pennsylvania and was working for Fethullah Gulen, a former ally of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Hanci has dual citizenship in Canada and Turkey.

A spokesperson from Global Affairs said in an email Sunday afternoon they’re “aware of a Canadian dual-citizen detained in Turkey” and that “Canadian consular officials are in contact with local authorities and are providing consular assistance.”

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Selman Durmus, Hanci’s brother-in-law, says his sister, Rumeysa Hansci, called him in Toronto Saturday as her husband was being arrested.

According to Durmus, Hanci’s wife and their two sons have not been detained, but are frightened by the ordeal.

“They’re worried, they’re scared. They’re just at one of their relative’s house just trying to patiently wait to see what happens.”

Durmus and Muradov say Hanci was arrested because of a photo of a man who resembled him, pictured with Fethullah Gulen, prompting authorities to claim he was the “right hand man” of the coup.

“That is not him. I have a bunch of photos of him obviously, if you put the photos side by side you can easily tell that it’s not him in the picture,” said Durmus.

“So this picture tells that he did the coup? This is the evidence for his detention and his imprisonment? It’s horrific, I can’t tell what we’ve been through with this unbelievable news,” said Muradov.

In Canada, Hanci works as an imam for Correctional Service Canada and Alberta correctional services.

Saima Jamal, another friend of Hanci’s, said he is the “calmest, coolest, gentle soul you could think of” and was shocked to hear he was detained.

“It’s a case of mistaken identity taken to a whole new level. And the fact that they’re calling him a U.S. citizen … he’s a Canadian citizen. He lives here in Calgary; his kids go to school here.”

Turkey has imposed a three-month state of emergency and detained or dismissed tens of thousands of people in the military, the judiciary, the education system and other institutions in the wake of the failed coup.

Turkish leaders allege that supporters of Gulen infiltrated state agencies and groomed loyalists in a vast network of private schools as part of an elaborate, long-term plan to take over the country.

Turkey announced Saturday it had seized more than 2,250 social, educational, or health care institutions and facilities that it claims pose a threat to national security.

Gulen has denied any knowledge of the attempted coup.

With files from The Canadian Press

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